Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State has urged the people of the State to vote for Mr. Godwin Obaseki of the All Progressives Congress and not the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, saying the PDP candidate, from his antecedents, cannot be trusted with public funds.
Addressing various traders’ associations in Benin City, Monday, Oshiomhole said his distrust for Ize-Iyamu with public funds prevented him from appointing the PDP candidate after he was re-elected as Governor in 2012.
According to Oshiomhole, “I didn’t appoint Ize-Iyamu because of his past record, I would not be comfortable to put government money in his hand, that is why I kept him completely out of government, I didn’t even give him a board appointment. He was part of the government that looted Edo state treasury. Don’t put the key to your kitchen in the hands of someone you don’t trust.
“Usually, a governor appoints the Director-General of his campaign after his election, but I didn’t appoint him into Government because I have his records, I do not trust him. You must know who you can use for what.
“I read Ize-Iyamu complaining that I’ve developed my village, Iyamho. Yes, because Iyamho is part of Edo State, but I didn’t put the money in my pocket. But what did they do in Okada, they said they wanted to do a dual carriageway, they collected the money and put it in their pocket and they didn’t do the Okada road.
“They accused me of building a state University, Edo University. Yes, but they also built a University and privatised it. The difference is this, in our records, they’ve spent more in Okada than any other place in the state, but there’s nothing on ground to show for it.
“Today, we are going to flag-off a new company that we gave land to in Ovia North East to produce a variety of products and set up an agricultural park. We have also given land to the company making Indomie, so instead of sending Indomie to Edo State, they will come and produce it here.
“When Godwin Obaseki says he will create 200,000 jobs, he knows what he is saying and he meant it; the road is already there to those 200,000 jobs.
The difference is that as SSG, between him and the Governor, they gave this land to one person and he started renting out the land to Yoruba cocoa farmers who were paying rent to him. We said No, only the Oba of Benin or the Enigie can collect rent on land, so we revoked the land and returned it to the people of Ovia.”
Candidate of the APC, Mr. Godwin Obaseki who also addressed the traders, said he was happy with the endorsement of the traders.
He said: “Before the coming of Comrade Oshiomhole, we didn’t have good roads in Benin City, I was born here and I know how this place was. All those things we’ve done in eight years, we want them to continue. Oshiomhole is the architect, he has laid the foundation and in our continuity programme, we will lay the blocks and continue from there.
He said: “Oshiomhole has done the first phase and we will start the second phase from November. Already, our job-creation promise has started, the Produce City ground-breaking is being done today, Comrade has signed the CofO for 150,000 hectares of land, big companies are coming to Edo State and they will provide jobs to the youths of the state.”
A palace chief, and the head of the Osula family, Chief Iyeke Osula, led hundreds of his supporters to decamp to the APC at the rally.
Hundreds of traders from New Building Materials Association, Lagos Street Traders’ Association, Ute Market Development Association, Tyres Delaers Association, Electrical Material Dealers Association and others grcaed the rally.
